The UPS International Disaster Relief and Resilience Award: Pearson

Award Type:

Longlisted for a Business in the Community Responsible Business Award 2018

Education is key to helping children in areas of conflict, says Pearson

Action and Impact

In Jordan, there are more than 650,000 Syrian refugees – 261,000 of which are school age. However, only 61% of them actually attend school, leaving them vulnerable to the risks of child labour, early marriage and recruitment into militia groups.

Pearson’s ‘Every Child Learning’ programme, launched in partnership with Save the Children in 2015, is the company’s response to helping to solve the issue, delivering education to Syrian refugees and vulnerable children in Jordan. The global business which develops teaching and learning resources, is also creating new solutions that improve the delivery of education in emergency and conflict-affected areas.

The company has committed £4.5 million up to 2019, not only in funding the programme to meet immediate needs in Jordan, but also in raising awareness of the urgency around improving education for children in emergency and areas of conflict,

“The world’s youngest citizens are often the most vulnerable to conflict. Places of learning should always be safe havens where everyone is able to learn and develop the skills they will need in their lives,” says John Fallon, Pearson’s CEO. Beyond mere philanthropy, this is a pioneering partnership bringing together the educational content expertise of Pearson and Save the Children’s experience working on the ground with vulnerable children.